Tomorrow for Lily St Regis
by O. Theo
Summary: This is my first fan-fic. It was just something I whipped up on a whim. I love Lily so there's more in store. Enjoy.
1. After Jail

Cars zoomed by on the street. Each one going somewhere special. Somewhere important. I didn't know where I was going. No Rooster. No home. No family, that's for sure. I was alone. I spotted a flash of yellow and I stuck my arm out, flagging the taxi down. The cab pulled up the curb almost knocking my off my feet. I backed up a few paces as I opened the door.

"Where to, sweet thing?"

The man behind the wheel was disgusting. He was fat and bulging out of his ratty little shirt. I would've been nice to him. I swear I would've; only I was too tired. I was too tired to try and be someone I'm not.

"I said, where to?"

His voice now took on a sharp edge. I didn't know where I was going. I began to twirl a strand of hair around my finger, a nervous habit of mine. I was thinking about my destination when something just bubbled up inside me.

"65th and 8th, please."

I didn't realize what I said until the taxi lurched forward. What was I doing? What was wrong with me? No one was home. Most likely his house was broken into. There would probably be someone else living in it. For all I know, he's still locked up. Sing Sing? Most likely.

I pressed my head against the dirty window. My curls twisted this way and that. His old bag lay at my feet. He had given me that bag before they took him away. Before they took me away. I kept my clothes in there. I kept what money I had in there. I kept all of my belongings in there. Pretty much my whole world was in that bag. I leaned down and pulled it close to me. I didn't want to let go.

The sun dipped behind the buildings as we made our way through the maze of a city. Every stop and go of the car made my heart pound. I was nervous and excited. Nervous about what I would find. Excited in the hope that he might have gotten out. He had gotten out for good behavior before, but he never did anything this bad. He had gotten it the worst. Hannigan and me only got 1 year. It seemed like a long time to me, but I realized we had gotten off easy. Rooster was sentenced to 30 years. 30 whole years.

My eyes closed. I only meant to rest for my eyes for a second, but a sudden stop of the taxi threw me forward. My bag flew somewhere and my eyes bolted open.

"Here we are, Miss. That'll be…."

He didn't get to finish. I threw some amount of money at him. It all landed in his face and he sort of sat there in stunned silence. I grabbed my bag and slowly climbed out of the car. He had dropped me a good 20 blocks from the apartment. I turned around and was about to ask him to drive me the extra blocks, but the man took off. _Men, I really do hate them._

The streets were still somewhat crowded at this time of night, though it wasn't a good time for ladies like me to walking around. My heels clicked innocently against the concrete. I buried my head in my collar, hoping to not draw attention to myself. The last thing I needed was some creep to try and pick me up. No thank you.

I almost walked past the apartment. I expected a huge neon sign hanging outside saying, "THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE'S OLD APARTMENT." I don't know what I was thinking. But as I stared at my old home, I realized it looked the same if not better. I walked right up to the door and almost fainted. It was all too real. What if he answered the door? A shiver ran through my body.

I knocked cautiously at first. Even I couldn't hear the knock. And so I knocked harder and waited. My heart skipped a beat at the creaking of stairs. I thought I was going to die as I heard the lock turning. And I melted on the spot when he opened the door.

"Oh, Rooster!" I leapt into his arms. How I missed him.

"Whoa."

The two fell backwards into the hallway. Lily giggled and got up, not caring about her wrinkled dress or her lopsided hat. Butterflies were flitting around in her stomach. Just as the man got up he stared at her face to face.

"Gwah! What?!? You're… You're… You're not Rooster."

Lily stared at the man before her. He looked like Rooster in every way possible. He was lanky and tall. He had the same hair and almost the same mustache, but his eyes. Oh, those eyes. Rooster's eyes were all different colors. Sometimse they appeared brown, but they were blue and green all at the same time. But this man before her had gray eyes. Just boring old gray eyes.

"You're not Rooster."

She slumped against the wall. Her hands shaking. This couldn't be happening. Was she dreaming? Instinctively she pinched herself and was immediately disappointed at the fact that she did not wake up. This was real.

The man sat down beside her. He looked so much like him it was scary.

"I don't know a Rooster, but I do know that you're a pretty lady who's in need of some good 'ole coffee. Would you like to come upstairs? I'm Eddy by the way." He extended his hand to her as he stood up.

Lily stared up at this man as she gingerly held onto his hand. With little effort, he pulled her up. He was so like Rooster. She read about this once. The mind believes what it wants to believes. Maybe this Eddy didn't look anything like Rooster. Maybe she was just imagining it all. But she was hungry, and thirsty, and not to mention tired. A cup of coffee did sound nice. She followed him up the rickety stairs to Rooster's old apartment.

Eddy opened the door and Lily nearly fainted. It looked exactly the same as it had been the last time she was here. A little gasp escaped her mouth. It was all too real.

"All of this," she motioned her hands around the room, "isn't yours, right?" It couldn't be Eddy's.

"No. Well yes. It's sort of complicated, dear. I'll heat up some Joe and you," he moved a chair to accommodate her, "can sit right here."

Eddy hurried off to the dingy kitchen. Lily could hear the burners firing up, the sound of the coffee being poured into the pot. Memories flooded her mind of when Rooster would make her coffee on a cold, winter night. They'd sit on the fire escape all wrapped together under a blanket. He would tell her stories and…. Eddy placed a warm mug in her hands.

"Here you go, dearie. Oh, I didn't quite catch your name." He sat opposite her across the table.

"Lily. Lily St. Regis." Her voice was barely a whisper. It was just so difficult, and she just couldn't shake the feeling of how weird this all was. Before she could control her mouth it slipped out. "How did you get this apartment? Why are you even here? You don't own this." Her own gloved hand covered her mouth the minutes the words slipped out. But Eddy simply laughed.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Ms. Regis. And it's a long story. Are you sure you want to hear all the tedious details? I mean, I just met you. I don't want to give you the impression that I'm a bore."

"No, I want to know. If you tell me your story I'll tell you mine. It's only fair."

Eddy nodded in agreement, and downed the last of his coffee.

"Well, here goes."


	2. The Truth

He stared at her deeply before actually beginning his story. With a slight cough, he began.

"I was contacted a year earlier by a man named Harold Francis. He apparently was working at some bank doing some important job. I don't know. He said I was inheriting something from family. The only family I knew of was my mother. She told me when I was 18 that my father had left when I was born. My mother was dead. I had no brothers or sisters that I knew of. You could understand my confusion.

But I went down to the bank. Curiosity overruled any apprehension that I had. I wanted to know what I had inherited and exactly from who. Nothing could've prepared me for what I had learned that day. Apparently I did have a brother. I don't know how he knew about me. It was all a mystery. But seeing as I was younger than him, I was his next of kin in case… you know… he died. I inherited his apartment also. So I've been living here for maybe a year. I can't bring myself to move anything or touch anything of his. It just doesn't seem right. Ya know?"

Lily simply stared at the man before her. Eddy. She didn't even know his last name… and WHAT?!?!

"DEAD!?!" Lily eyes filled with tears. "ROOSTER'S DEAD?!?!"

It couldn't be true. She felt the walls closing in around her. She couldn't breathe. Lily yanked off her gloves and her hat. She was suddenly so hot. With a start she stood and pulled open the window. Her whole body was shaking with the heaving sobs she emitted.

_Rooster couldn't have been his brother. There is no possible way. No. No. No. Rooster was raised with Agatha and his mother. It was just the 3 of them His father was… where was his father? Did his father leave? Could his father have left and had another baby with some other woman? That would technically make Eddy his brother. Oh my gosh. _

"Did they say what your brother's name was?" A sliver of hope shimmied its way into her heart. Maybe, just maybe, Eddy wasn't his brother.

"I don't remember his first name. Though I believe his last name was something like Hand…Handigam… Handigan?"

"HANNIGAN! It's Hannigan." Lily all but collapsed into her chair. It was true. Rooster was dead.

Eddy had an odd expression on his face, but it was normal I suppose. Here was this woman who he had never met before that was pretty much having a nervous breakdown right in his kitchen. And somehow she knew his long lost brother.

"If you don't mind me asking, who's Rooster? I mean, you talk about him an awful lot." Eddy was dying to know. Obviously this man was important.

"He was only the love of my life. He was my best-friend, my only friend, my life." Lily reminisced silently while Eddy thought silently also.

"Is Rooster somehow involved in your story?"

She nodded slowly.

"He had a sister, Agatha. She was in charge of an orphanage. There was this orphan, Annie. She got to spend some time with Big 'Ole Warbucks and there was this search for her parents. Me, Agatha, and Rooster decided that Rooster and me would pretend to be Annie's parents, kidnap her, and then spilt the reward money. We got caught and we all got arrested. Agatha and me got one year. Rooster was sentenced to…30."

It all came out in one rushed breath. She realized just how far-fetched it all sounded. She expected Eddy to send her out on her behind, send her packing, but he didn't. He just nodded.

"Would you like to stay here for awhile? I don't mind. There's an extra room. Stay as long as you like."

And with that Eddy got up and left.


	3. The Next Morning

Lily didn't remember much when she awoke. Her cheeks felt puffy and she quickly scooted towards the mirror. Her whole face was slightly swollen, especially her eyes. She'd been crying. With a confused sigh, she sat back on the bed. Her head made contact with the wooden headboard behind her.

She had slept in Rooster's extremely small guest room. The two used to joke and call it the guest closet. The walls were a bare white and there were boxes all around her. It would've been a closet if there hadn't been a tiny window above the bed. It overlooked the city street below. Even though the room was small and almost impersonal, it reminded her so very much of Rooster. He never had a knack for interior design, yet his apartment definitely had it's own style.

There was a soft knock on the door that brought Lily from her reverie. "I won't look if you're dressing or anything, Miss Lily. I just have some breakfast here for you. May I come in?" Eddy was slowly inching himself into the room with his one hand covering his eyes and the other hand carrying a tray.

"You can come in Eddy," Lily said smiling. She began to smooth the sheets to clear a space for Eddy and her breakfast. He turned to face her as he removed his hand from his eyes. "Good morning there sunshine. Just being hospitable. Wouldn't want you to go hungry though you wouldn't really notice the difference. You're mighty skinny there." He nodded towards her as he handed her the tray.

Lily simply nodded as she dug into the eggs and bacon he had placed before her. It was true. She was skinny. It wasn't on purpose though. she was delicate. She ate like a truck driver most of the time, yet she hardly gained weight. Her very few girlfriends were always envious of her figure.

Eddy just stared at the woman before him. Her kinky blonde hair was slightly matted. Her nightgown strap was a little too loose. Last night's makeup was smeared under her eyes. Something about the way she looked intrigued him. She had a pinched face with high cheekbones and pouty lips. Her skin was like alabaster. Her limbs were skinny but not in a gangly sort of way, and her feet were so small. The ferocious eating threw off her appearence just slightly.

When she surfaced for air, she looked up at Eddy, embarrassed that he had witnessed that whole ordeal. "I was hungry," she muttered, laughing softly. A jolly grin broke out on his face as he took her tray from. "No worries. Now if you don't mind, I'd appreciate if you cleaned up a bit. We're going out soon," he said.

"To where," Lily wondered aloud. "Nothing special," Eddy replied. "Just the park. I want you to meet someone, alright. Just get ready," he said while leaving the room. He left Lily to change.

She emerged into the kitchen wearing a simple dress. It was a soft peach color with white accents. It wasn't a dress she normally wore, but she felt that now was a good time to make some changes. If not now, then when? These words floated around her mind as she rumaged through her lone suitcase.

Eddy had been sitting at the table picking at his nails. At her appearence, he smiled gingerly and stood up. Lily noticed his smile. Just like Rooster's. It was a crooked sort of grin that titled a bit to the left. Eddy's smile was more shy than Rooster's. He looked bashful almost.

"Well you sure look nice. I hope you don't mind me saying that, Miss Lily. I was just brought up that way." He still had that crooked grin plastered over his face. Lily couldn't help but to smile back. It felt so very nice to have that warm feeling inside. Happiness almost.

"What exactly are we doing today. I know we're heading to the park and to meet someone, but are those the only details you wish to give? You're leaving me in the dark a little bit," she said. If she knew any better, she would've left. Not many women would stick around with the long lost brother of their dead lover. It all seemed so surreal.

"I'm afraid that's all I can give you. But you seem like a woman who's seen too much for her young life. I'm going to take you to someone who can hopefully straighten it all out. Don't worry. But if you're spooked, I wouldn't mind if you left. You're awfully brave for sticking around. You're not like other gals, are ya?"

She really didn't know how to answer that question so she let stand unanswered. It hung awkwardly in the air while Eddy stared at his shoes. Lily was suddenly enthralled by her fingernails. Eddy finally stood up. That crooked grin made another appearence as he held out his arm for Lily. She took it shyly, lowering her head. The two made their way out of the appartment and onto the street. 


End file.
